Electric fireplace made real smoke

[c214dick]

We turned on the electric fireplace to help warm up the unit as it was 18 outside. It turned on but did not produce any heat. I turned it off and on again and smoke billowed out of the vent.
I turned it off immediately and it will stay off until we get to Florida. I want to remove it to see if there is any loose wires. Is there any recommendations as to the removal process and what else to look for.

[1retired06]

Ours came with a dimplex manual with easy instructions for removal. Might check your stack of info sheets that came with the rig. Pretty simple, remove the screws left and right front, and slide forward and out, being careful with the front facing. Electrical hookup is just a plug in. Electrical issue would be my guess re the smoke.

[c214dick]

Thx Mike. Sounds easy. At least it will get warmer as we head south. Temp inside holding at 63 which is good considering outside is in the teens.

[K0LCB]

I don't think smoking fireplaces are allowed in Florida. See if Chantex will help

[DQDick]

Glad you caught it before it caught. Apparently they are making them more realistic now days

[mlh]

That's what I was thinking. That's realistic but that might be too good.
Lynwood

[c214dick]

Our new detectors caught it the first time when there was just a whisp of smoke. I caught it the second time when I tried starting it up again. Though the smoke billowed out the detector did not alarm. I guess there only good for the preliminary smoke/fire.

[rohrmann]

You can go to www.dimplex.com to download owners, repair & service, and trouble shooting manuals for your unit. Just have to get the model number off your fireplace. The warranty is two years on these things, first year for the whole unit, the second year parts only, and bulbs are not included.

[c214dick]

Thx

[c214dick]

Just checked my Dimple book and it only states a one year warranty.

[rohrmann]

Maybe they have changed their warranty since ours was made. This is copied from our owners manual:

Two Year Limited Warranty
Products to which this limited warranty
applies
This limited warranty applies to your newly
purchased Dimplex electric fireplace. This
limited warranty applies only to purchases
made in any province of Canada except
for Yukon Territory, Nunavut, or Northwest
Territories or in any of the 50 States of the
USA (and the District of Columbia) except
for Hawaii and Alaska. This limited warranty
applies to the original purchaser of
the product only and is not transferable.
Products excluded from this limited warranty
Light bulbs are not covered by this limited
warranty and are the sole responsibility of
the owner/purchaser. Products purchased
in Yukon Territory, Nunavut, Northwest
Territories, Hawaii, or Alaska are not covered
by this limited warranty. Products
purchased in these States, provinces, or
territories are sold AS IS without warranty
or condition of any kind (including, without
limitation, any implied warranties or conditions
of merchantability or fitness for a
particular purpose) and the entire risk of
as to the quality and performance of the
products is with the purchaser, and in the
event of a defect the purchaser assumes
the entire cost of all necessary servicing
or repair.
What this limited warranty covers and for
how long
Products, other than fireplace surrounds
(mantels) and trims, covered by this
limited warranty have been tested and
inspected prior to shipment. Subject to
the provisions of this warranty, Dimplex
warrants such products to be free from
defects in material and workmanship for a
period of 2 years from the date of the first
purchase of such products as follows: (a)
a repair or replacement warranty on defective
products or parts, including in-home
services, for the first year following the
date of first purchase; and (b) thereafter, a
replacement of parts warranty on defective
products and parts (with no in-home services)
for the 1 year period commencing
on the first anniversary of first purchase
and ending on the second anniversary of
the date of first purchase.
Dimplex fireplace surrounds (mantels) and
trims covered by this limited warranty have
been tested and inspected prior to shipment
and, subject to the provisions of this
warranty, Dimplex warrants such products to
be free from defects in material and
workmanship for a period of 1 year from
the date of first purchase of such products.
Warranty services do not include in-home
services.

[bad99ram]

There was a guy in the last park we were at that had his catch on fire. It was the remote control unit for the fireplace itself. On his the fireplace was plugged into the remote control unit which in turn was plugged into the power receptacle. After he told us the story another one was found where the plug had actually melted into the remote control unit. I would check that out. Hope it helps.

[jcurtis934]

On mine, it was the bimetallic breaker that is part of the heating coils. Look on one end and you will probably see the remains of that breaker. Bad news is that you need to replace as a unit of coils and fan. John

[c214dick]

Tomorrow my wife is going out so that will be fireplace day. Anyone in the Silver Springs area want to help?

[Art-n-Marge]

My fireplace burned up similar to yours a few months ago. There were four wood caps on the façade. The hardest part was trying to find a way to remove these wooden caps. I ended up using one of DW's sewing needles to pop the covers off. After removing the caps there were four square head wood screws to remove. The fireplace then slid out.

Finally, I removed the top cover (a bunch of metal screws held the cover in place). I then found the model number and ordered a new heater/blower replacement. Keep track where all the wires are connected and the new unit I purchased was an exact replacement including all the wiring. I was able to replace the unit days later since I had taken pictures of the unit and wiring before disconnecting the burned up assembly. Make sure you get pictures of ALL the wiring and the pictures are clear and no wiring is obscured.

I have read other posts that another cause of smoke was been the connectors. If they are loose or problematic they can burn from a poor connection. This was the first thing I checked, but in my unit they looked very good and clean.

I also used the opportunity to remove lots of dust that found its way into the fireplace spacing and on the fireplace itself. Do not be surprised at the amount of dust you will find. My rig was very dusty after my 10 years of ownership. I plan to remove the fireplace and dust things on a periodic basis. I can only imagine this will help extend the life of the unit.

[c214dick]

Thx Art. My model was held in to place by 4 screws in the front. Once removed it slid out easily. I unplugged it from it's receptacle and took it out side. I plugged it in to the outside receptacle and "fired" it up. No smoke. Everything worked fine I let it run for about 10 minutes. and re-installed it. We decided not to let it run unattended.

[Art-n-Marge]

It's a good idea not to run it unattended. I'm sure you'll never fully trust your fireplace completely. Smoke is always caused by something... you just haven't been able to find it yet. At least it wasn't something major and it's running again, but I hope it rears its ugly head sooner than later so you can take care of it.

In my case when the heater/blower assembly failed, it never came back but never smoked, so I can only relate my unit failed, but not the same way as yours after all. Mine never came back, so when I opened it and took a look, it became evident, the blower assembly had failed.

[c214dick]

Fireplace is working. Nice and comfortable. Will not let t run unattended.